Tandem Bank Appoints Dobson as CFO
Weekly news up to Monday, 18th of November 2024.
REPORT
Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) – Rearchitecting Financial Services Landscape. The BaaS market is set to quadruple by 2032, reaching $𝟲𝟰.𝟳 𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗻 with a 17% annual growth rate 🤯 Discover more
👀 NEWS HIGHLIGHT
U.S. government agencies are reportedly investigating Citigroup’s anti-money laundering (AML) policies and its ties to a sanctioned Russian official.
The Department of Justice (DOJ), the FBI and the IRS are looking at the bank’s work for a trust that holds assets owned by Russian billionaire Suleiman Abusaidovich Kerimov, Bloomberg reported .
📰ARTICLE OF THE WEEK
In 2023, the 𝗲𝗦𝗜𝗠 market soared to a value of $𝟰.𝟳𝗕 and is projected to skyrocket to $𝟭𝟲.𝟯𝗕 by 2027.
NOW, ON TO THE SUMMARY OF LAST WEEK'S NEWS
🔦 DIGITAL BANKING HIGHLIGHTS
⭐️ Tandem Bank appoints Dobson as CFO.
⭐️ Revolut Business sees 11-fold revenue growth in Australia.
⭐️ Flexys integrates debt management software with 10x's core banking system.
⭐️ SoftBank-backed FinTech Zopa aims to double profit this year as it eyes 2025 current account launch.
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🌎 REGIONAL HIGHLIGHTS
UK 🇬🇧
Metro Bank fined nearly £17m for failure to monitor potential money laundering. The FCA said that while Metro started automating the monitoring of customer transactions for potential financial crime in 2016, the system did not work as intended. More on that here
Digital bank Kroo reaches £1 billion in customer deposits. This comes less than two years after launching its first current account, cementing its place among the challenger banks that are shaping the UK’s pioneering FinTech industry.
Revolut expands crypto exchange to 30 new markets in Europe. Revolut, which claims to have over 45 million customers globally, launched Revolut X as its stand-alone exchange in the UK earlier this year. More on that here
NatWest blocks staff from using WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger. The bank had already told employees to stick to "approved channels" for conversations about business matters. But now it has gone further and made the platforms inaccessible on work phones and computers.
Revolut facing potential legal action in battle with Crowdfunding platform after a years-long battle over the sale of its shares by early investors. The row is currently at a flashpoint as the British banking company resists a US private equity investor’s efforts to snap up shares at a heavy discount through start-up investment platform Republic Europe.
Revolut is currently gaining 1 Million users every 3 weeks. "Strategy is not important. It’s all about Execution" - according to Antoine Le Nel at Web Summit in Lisbon. Checkout Antoine's complete presentation in this video (starting at 2.56).
EUROPE 🇪🇺
Deutsche’s private bank fires over 100 senior bankers in cost-cutting drive. The bank has fired 111 senior managers in its retail and private wealth unit as it enacts cost cuts to meet 2025 targets, aiming to lower the unit’s cost-to-income ratio from 80% last year to 60-65% next year.
NVIDIA & GFT: Innovating for Banks in Open-Source AI Deal. Per the deal, GFT will implement NVIDIA's suite of AI tools, including NIM microservices for model deployment, Triton Inference Server for model serving and NeMo for model development. Explore more
USA 🇺🇸
The FTC comes after Dave, stating the neobank misled consumers by marketing $500 cash advances as “instant” with phrases like “on the spot” while rarely offering them and charging an “Express Fee” for immediate access, which was only disclosed after users signed up and granted bank account access.
PayPal unveils innovative Money Pooling feature, simplifying group expenses between family and friends. Launching across the US, Germany, Italy, and Spain, the new feature lets customers create a pool in the PayPal app or online, invite contributions from friends and family, track totals, and transfer funds to their PayPal balance.
CANADA 🇨🇦
Neo Financial raises $360M to accelerate growth and position itself as leading challenger to banks in Canada. Consisting of CAD $110M of equity and CAD $250M of debt, the new capital will accelerate the expansion of Neo Financial’s suite of innovative financial products, providing competitive alternatives to traditional banks.
LATAM
Argentina’s Ualá reaches $2.75 billion valuation in new funding. The Argentine neobank has raised $300 million from investors at a valuation of $2.75 billion, the latest funding haul for one of the most valuable startups in Latin America.
Nubank reaches 100 million customers in Brazil. This number represents 57% of the adult population in the country. Nu had already reached this milestone globally in May. This achievement reflects the focus on customers and leveraging technology to build an efficient, low-cost platform, according to Brazil CEO Livia Chanes.
Wise Platform Announces Partnership with Grupo Travelex Confidence in Brazil. Through this collaboration, Travelex Confidence will now offer a global account through its app, using Wise Platform’s infrastructure to provide a simpler and more cost-effective global financial experience for its Brazilian customers.
Nubank has reached 𝟭𝟬𝟬 𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗻 customers in Brazil, a number that represents 57% of the adult population in the country. In the third quarter of 2024, Nu’s business model once again demonstrated its capability of combining growth and profitability. Click here to learn more
ASIA
Thunes and Papara establish a bilateral partnership to enable cross-border transfers to and from Türkiye. This alliance allows Papara users in Türkiye to send money to over 3 billion wallets, 4 billion bank accounts, and 15 billion cards across 130 countries—making fast, affordable international transfers to Papara accounts possible for the first time.
Paymentology announces strategic partnership with Zand Bank to accelerate FinTech growth in the UAE. Through this partnership, both firms will enable FinTechs to thrive by offering a range of specialised services, including BIN-sponsorship, virtual IBANs, and Client Money Accounts.
GXS Bank deposits triple since last year, reaching US$1.1 Billion in Q3. Grab Holdings reported significant growth in its financial services and digital banking segments for the third quarter of 2024, driven by an expansion in lending and deposit services.
Mbank announces launch of Aani Instant Payment Platform. Aani’s Instant Payment Platform is set to transform digital payments in the UAE, aligning Mbank’s commitment with the UAE’s goal of offering trusted, secure, and instant payment solutions 24/7.
AFRICA
Ecobank, TransferTo forge strategic partnership for cross-border payments. The bank said the collaboration will create a safe, inclusive financial ecosystem that bridges markets, enabling swift reliable payments across borders and offers financial empowerment tools to millions of Africans and businesses.